Week 2 NFL Betting Lines

It’s never too soon to study the early betting lines. With Week 1 in the books, it’s time to see which teams impressed the most in the eyes of Vegas handicappers, and which ones represent good value in Week 2. A few of the upcoming matchups jump off the screen, while others seem about right. Obviously, there will be some movement between now and kick-off, but here are the early odds.

Jets at Patriots (-13) – The Pats failed to cover a double-digit spread at Buffalo, but now they return home to face the hated Jets, who bounced the favored Bucs last Sunday. New England will be without Shane Vereen (broken wrist), Danny Amendola (doubtful), and presumably Rob Gronkowski. The Jets defense is solid and they forced overtime in last year’s meeting at Foxborough. For the second straight week, the Pats will face a rookie quarterback. This is a lot of points for a team that looked very shaky in the opener.

Chargers at Eagles (-7) – Chip Kelly’s hyper-speed offense raced out to a 26-point lead last night then held on to drop the Redskins by 6. Kelly’s Oregon teams were dominant at home, but the Eagles have had trouble gaining an advantage in Lincoln Financial Field during the last few years. The Chargers were a feisty bunch against Houston, but struggled to stop Matt Schaub once he went into hurry-up mode in the fourth quarter.

Titans at Texans (-8.5) – Houston failed to cover on the road in San Diego. Tennessee crushed the favored Steelers in Pittsburgh. Is the Titans defense really this good, or did their performance have more to do with the Steelers’ ineptitude? The Texans offense heated up in the second half Monday night, and pounded the Titans 38-14 at home in 2012.

Redskins at Packers (-7) – The Redskins were a disaster in the first half versus the Eagles. RG III was rusty and Alfred Williams had a severe case of the fumbles. Green Bay is smarting after a third consecutive defeat to the Niners. The loser of this one digs the dreaded 0-2 hole.

Broncos at Giants (+5) – Another Manning Bowl. If the same Giants team that lost to Dallas shows up on Sunday, it will be a long day against the well-rested Broncos. Peyton was scintillating in the season opener, while Eli was erratic. Big Blue is staring down an 0-2 start.

Steelers at Bengals (-7) – Cincinnati had the Bears beat, but suffered a mini collapse late. Pittsburgh was downright awful in losing to Tennessee and center Maurkice Pouncey went down with a torn ACL. Could be a rough year in Steel City.